In addition to delivering much needed laughs, Improv Shows & Workshops teach a number of valuable skills. Pairing with cultural arts (music, theater), language arts (storytelling, public speaking, listening) and character building (self confidence, team, respect, eye contact) programs, we help build a better community of students and staff. (Ask about our professional development programming).

INTERACTIVE IMPROV SHOWS

EIGHT IS NEVER ENOUGH delivers hilarious interactive musical theater improvised based on audience suggestions and participation. Every five minutes the show MC interactacts with students as for their favorite vacation spot, toy, weekend activity. This inspires an original skit or song. Many scene involve audience volunteers on stage more closely steering the comedy direction. RUNTIME: 30-75 minutes.

IMPROV COMEDY WORKSHOPS

The focus is on fun so students do not even realize they are learning valuable life skills – creativity (writing and critical thinking), community (respect, team communications) and leadership (public speaking, self confidence, listening, focus, eye contact). Each workshop is a series of games. We warm-up as we simply pass the energy around a circle with silly sounds. We then work together as a team to tell stories and create theatrical scenes. The #1 rule is “YES AND…”. We accept everything our team offers, as well as who they are. We suspend judgment. We simply listen and respond in the moment. We use these same games to help major corporations develop team, leadership, sales and service skills (JP Morgan Chase, Enrst & Young, Louis Vuitton, BING/Microsoft, Twitter). RUNTIME: 30-120 minutes long.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Our professional development programs serve to purposes. 1) Corporate Style team building and leadership training. Improv workshops help teacher become better teachers – increasing self confidence and communication skills. 2) Learning to teach Improv games in the classroom helps build a better community of students. Studies show laughter in the classroom raises test scores. Laughter also decreases stress and blood pressure while building trust. As we instruct corporate teams, try using these games to break the ice and get students ready for a big test, lecture or discussion. Use Improv to role play history, literary characters or even a human model of the solar system (As suggested by our NYC school science teachers).

RESIDENCIES, DISTRICT BLOCK BOOKING

Get the best session rates by booking a series of shows & workshops together. Pairing professional development with student shows & workshops maximizes the impact on the entire community.

$800 ONE SHOW
$1200 TWO SHOWS back to back
$2000 *DAY of SHOWS/WORKSHOPS
$7500 *WEEK of SHOWS/WORKSHOPS
*day/week of shows/workshops can be two schools/day.

WHY IMPROV COMEDY

Humor and creativity work in similar ways, says humor guru William Fry, M.D., of Stanford University–by creating relationships between two disconnected items, you engage the whole brain.

“Laughter is the best medicine,” is an old saying that may be more true that we ever realized before. Studies at John Hopkins, Stanford and other universities have established that laughter in the class room increases test scores by increasing alertness, memory, and creativity. Laughter helps lower blood presser and stress hormones. Laughter helps break downs walls of insecurity and resentment, replacing with strong bonds of trust.

FROM http://www.laughteryogaamerica.com/services/laughter-education-733.phpIn children social play is critical to the development of social skills and emotional intelligence. Restricted play results in deficient social skills which can lead to life-long physical, mental, emotional and social problems. Laughter promotes childlike playful behavior. New research shows that playful adults continue to learn social skills and improve their emotional intelligence. Learning requires that one lower what linguists call the “affective barrier.” You can’t be uptight and learn much. You have to ease up and laugh to create.